As there are so many Black Friday offers still available, I thought I would share this early! We all have that friend we need to find a gift for who’s heavily into wine or spirits, but fine booze is becoming so expensive… and… where do you start anyway?! Luckily for us, there are some exceptional wine-related gifts out there that will make great presents for the most discerning sippers and at every price level. Here are some lovely things I’ve come across recently:
The Wine Wisdom Desk Calendar, £11.99 Waterstones, Foyles, Amazon
Created by fellow wine lover and educator, Amanda Selby from Drink With Me, The Wine Wisdom 2026 desk calendar is a perfectly sized present, brimming with fun, daily facts and tips to choose the right wine, every time.
Vinca Wine Tasting Cracker (3x187ml), £16 John Lewis, vincawine.com
Vinca is one of the best canned wine brands you can find and this cute cracker is the perfect way to gift all three of their Sicilian wines to someone for Christmas. Inside you’ll find their zingy, tropical Cataratto white, their pale and saline Syrah rosé and their crunchy, strawberry-scented red made with Nero d’Avola and Frapatto.
Mulled Wine Candle, £12 thewinecaverns.co.uk
This rather smart mulled wine candle smells as good as it looks and will certainly make any home feel more cosy this festive season with its rich, red wine and winter spiced aromas. These are hand poured, vegan and made with soy wax.
On Tuscany: From Brunello to Bolgheri, Wine Tales From the Heart of Italy, compiled by Susan Keevil, £35 Académie du Vin Library
Tuscany will always have my heart and it will yours too after reading this. A wonderful look at one of the world’s best loved wine regions, written by a team of knowledgeable experts who also clearly love the finer things in life.
The HelenaSips Bite-Size Video Wine Course, £39 helenasips.com
For those who want the basics in bite-sized chunks with videos between 1 and 5 minutes long, take a look at subscribing to my substack here to access my wine course. It’s a bit different in vibe but this time, you’ll remember what you’ve learned.
Coravin Wine Journal £29.99 coravin.co.uk
Perfect if your giftee already has a Coravin wine preservation system (see below), this journal lets you record all your tasting experiences, even of the same bottle over time. Inside, you’ll find guides to assessing wine along with tips on food pairing and best practices for using your Coravin. It’s super smart too - and a nice affordable price.
Coravin Timeless Six Wine Exploration Bundle in Hermitage Red, £296.99 (WAS £539.99) SAVE 45% in the Black Friday sale NOW!
Coravin is the ultimate wine preservation system that allows you to enjoy tasting fine wine by the glass without pulling the cork. This super slinky, all singing all dancing version is in ‘Hermitage Red’ includes extra premium accessories like a Fast Pour Needle and Vintage Needle to leverage with different wines in your collection, along with six argon capsules, six Coravin screw caps, a Coravin aerator, display base and a carry case.
Set of 4 Vintage Art Deco Nick and Nora Coupe Glasses, £39.99 Amazon
Party like it’s the 1920s, they say! These vintage, 150ml Art Deco style ribbed Nick and Nora glasses are exclusively shaped for many classic cocktails from the Martini and Manhattan to Lemond Drops and Cosmos. They’e my corporate colour too. I must sent this link as a hint to someone!
Grahams NEW EDITION: 40 Year Old Tawny Port in a Gift Box, £185 vintagewineandport.co.uk
A glorious masterclass in patience, this 40-Year-Old Tawny has spent the better part of four decades dozing in seasoned oak, slowly turning into liquid mahogany. A kind of edible time capsule, think of it as your more relaxed, still impeccably tailored alternative to Vintage Port when the occasion calls for something special but not solemn. A fabulous wine that looks the part too.
Hambledon English Wine Experience Voucher, from £25-£225 Hambledonvineyard.giftpro.co.uk
Known to many as the birthplace of English sparkling wine, Hambledon Wine Estate in Hampshire is offering a selection of gift cards at various amounts for tasting and dining experiences at their South Downs estate, products and even wine education courses. It’s the ideal gift for the wine lover who has everything!
Cask & Crust: A Trio of 50cl whiskies £124.99 Casktrade
Whisky lovers, heads up! Cask Trade have done a brilliant collaboration with dram-loving pieman Si King who has hand selected some limited-edition whiskies to pair with pies, all in aid of Sunderland & Newcastle Foodbanks. The whiskies featured are Benrinnes, 11 Years Old, Oloroso Quarter Cask; Ben Nevis, 15 Years Old, Refill Barrel and Pulteney, 11 Years Old, Refill Barrel.
The Whiskey Bible (Hardback), Noah Rothbaum, £28- 35 Waterstones, Amazon
A proper tome from a proper expert, The Whiskey Bible is a guide to all styles of whiskey, from Scotch to Bourbon, with a country-by-country look at prominent distillers and culture, the various techniques used, hundreds of tasting notes and some rather fabulous, classic more more modern cocktail recipes at the end.
More gift ideas will be added soon so keep checking back!